The Great 8’s Final Lap by Jesse Caron

Ovi entered the NHL like a wrecking ball and never really stopped. The Capitals took him first overall in 2004, and by the time he finally debuted a year later, it was obvious the league had something different on its hands. He scored 52 goals as a rookie, won the Calder, and quickly built a reputation around booming one-timers, heavy hits and a personality that made every goal feel like an event. Two decades later, the missing tooth, yellow laces and left-circle office are as recognizable as anything in hockey.

The accomplishments speak for themselves. Ovechkin won a Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe in 2018, collected three Hart Trophies and nine Rocket Richard Trophies, and eventually did what once seemed untouchable by passing Wayne Gretzky for the NHL’s all-time goals record. Blues fans even got a front-row seat to part of that history when Ovechkin scored career goal No. 900 against Jordan Binnington and St. Louis. One funny footnote remains, though: Joel Hofer has yet to surrender a goal to the greatest goal scorer the sport has ever seen.

He changed the standard for goal scoring longevity, helped transform Washington into a true hockey market and spent more than 20 years making defenses look helpless even when everyone knew exactly where the shot was coming from. His final season will be a league wide victory lap, and when he makes one last stop in St. Louis, Blues fans will be watching one of the defining players of his generation take his final swings.